William Sturgeon invents the electromagnet
British scientist William Sturgeon invented the electromagnet in 1824. His first electromagnet was a horseshoe-shaped piece of iron that was wrapped with about 18 turns of bare copper wire.
Technology & innovation
Nicolas Appert invents canning, revolutionizing food storage
In 1809, Nicolas Appert, a French confectioner and brewer, observed that food cooked inside a jar did not spoil unless the seals leaked, and developed a method of sealing food in glass jars.
Samuel Bentham invents plywood
In his patent applications, he described the concept of laminating several layers of veneer with glue to form a thicker piece — the first description of what we now call plywood.
British physician Edward Jenner develops first-ever successful vaccine
In the West, Jenner is often called “the father of immunology”, and his work is said to have “saved more lives than the work of any other human”.
The Japanese surgeon Hanaoka Seishū is the first to use general anaesthesia
Hanaoka Seishū was a Japanese of the Edo period with a knowledge of Chinese herbal medicine, as well as Western surgical techniques he had learned through Rangaku.
Joseph Bramah invents the hydraulic press
A hydraulic press is a machine press using a hydraulic cylinder to generate a compressive force.
Thomas Saint invents the sewing machine
In 1790, the English inventor Thomas Saint invented the first sewing machine design, but he did not successfully advertise or market his invention. His machine was meant to be used on leather and canvas material.
John Wilkinson invents a boring machine that becomes perhaps humanity’s first machine tool
John “Iron-Mad” Wilkinson invented precision boring machine that could bore cast iron cylinders, such as those used in steam engines of James Watt.
William Cullen invents the first artificial refrigeration machine
Cullen used a pump to create a partial vacuum over a container of diethyl ether, which then boiled, absorbing heat from the surrounding air.
Bartolomeo Cristofori invents the piano
The piano is an acoustic, stringed musical instrument invented in Italy by Bartolomeo Cristofori around the year 1700 (the exact year is uncertain), in which the strings are struck by hammers.